Retailers keep tabs on consumers’ return habits

—A consumer buys an item at Best Buy and later returns it. Even if the shopper has the original receipt and is within the time frame when returns are permitted, store policy requires that Smith provide a photo ID, such as a driver’s license. Other stores, such as Home Depot, only require the ID if there’s no receipt or if the item was purchased with a store credit.

—The ID is swiped and then some information from the transaction is sent by the store to The Retail Equation. The company says the information captured from the ID typically includes the identification number, name, address, date of birth and expiration date.

—The Retail Equation catalogues return activity by the shopper and creates a “return activity report” on him with his returns at the store. If TRE determines that there’s a pattern of questionable returns that suggests potential fraud, it would notify Best Buy, which could then deny returns by that shopper at the store for a period of time.

The threshold for too many returns is determined by each retailer. TRE says the vast majority of returns — about 99 percent — are accepted.

In a 2011 lawsuit in Florida against Best Buy, Steven Siegler complained after the magnetic strip on his driver’s license was swiped for a return. He wanted the manager to delete the information. His suit said Best Buy refused. He alleged that Best Buy violated privacy law when it swiped the license. But a federal appeals court agreed with a lower court ruling that the Driver’s Privacy Protection Act didn’t apply in the case.